Little Scarlett is getting close.
She is getting real close to walking and it reminds me of someone learning to train their dog to stop pulling on leash.
Painful.
Scarlett is getting much better but she’s had her share of falls and bumps in the process of learning to balance and make forward progress on two feet.
I’ve seen plenty of people get bumps and bruises as they trained their dogs to walk on leash.
In my opinion it is one of the most difficult commands to teach.
The dog wants to go , so they pull and because they make forward progress, it becomes a reward for the dog.
The other problem is that opposition reflex kicks in and walking becomes almost impossiblw with some dogs.
So here is my first piece of advice.
FIRST: Exercise – a tired dog will not pull as hard as a dog that has been sitting around the house all day waiting for you to come home.
SECOND: Here’s where the art part comes in. The secret to walking a dog on a loose leash is making sure that the leash is loose.
I know, sounds sorta like a Zen riddle.
How do I keep the leash loose if the dog is already pulling?
I did say it was an art.
The trick I have used for years is to turn around walk in the opposite direction that the dog is walking.
This forces the dog to pay attention to where you are walking and it prevents the leash from ever getting tight.
The leash remains loose.
Believe me, I agree with you, it is easier said than done and does take practice but you can do it.
If you’d like specialized help, check out our private dog training sessions that will help you teach your dog to walk on leash and you’ll never have to worry about getting pulled over again!
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Best,
Eric